The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-01-05
STEAMBOAT BURNED
Destruction Of the Bradish johnson at Jackson,
Alabama, Wednesday Night
Full Particulars of the Disaster by One of
the Officers OF the Steamer-Twenty-four
Persons Believed to Have Perished.

MOBILE, Ala, Dec. 30-News was received
here late last night of the burning of the
steamer Bradish Johnson, used as a board
ing house at Jackson, on the Bigbee branch
of the Tombigbee River, eleven miles above
Mobile, on Wednesday night. There is no
telegraph line to that point. The Johnson
was lying with her nose in the bank, and a
gang-plank out. A. c. Yeall, one OF the
bosses, gave the following description of the
IRE: II had Just gone to bed. when l heard
the cry of fire. | got into my pants, seized
my other effects, and rushed out into the
.csbin. There had been party OF men out
there playing cards, and they saw the smoke
rising. When / got into the cabin the fire
seemed TO be in the ststeroom aft of the
pantry on the port side. There was an old
man, an Alabamian, in the room next
to mine. / don't know his name.
He was asleep when l went to
bed, for 1 heard him snoring Whether
got HIM awake or not, l don't know. l
hammered and pounded away with all my
might. You see, the smoke wassalready fill
ing thecabin, and the men were running
around like mad. 1 hardly knew what hap
pened. / ran forward through the cabin,
and nv eyes and mouth cot so full of smoke
that did not know where I was going. The
negroes were mostly lodged on the lower
deck. They all came running forward about
the same time we got there. The vessel
burned very fast, and was solid mass of
hames in q moment. When | had reached
the hank 1 turned around and saw the pilot
house and texas fall in with the negroes.
They fled up the bank in g mob and rushed
to the woods, where they huddled like sheep
and could not be persuaded to come down to
the boat. They knew that some Of their
number were lost in the burning boat, and
they were seemingly superstitiOus about 1t.
They did not want TO go near the place; 50
the boat became q mass OF flames
snd burned for about half an hour,
when she sunk. As soon as got ashore
there was g report that there were men in
the water. SkiAs were manned and sent to
their rescue. They picked up Mr. DAILY, one
OF the Carson men. William Neal, an Eu-
glishmaD, in one of the skiils, had two ne
Rroes right near him, but they sank out of
sight. William Bowling, the cook, who re-
ceived slight burns on the face and hands,
found a white man lying in a state room
door. Dan HillbOuse came up and the two
dragged the man, supposed to be McElroy,
out on the boiler deck. The man was IN
conscious from the effects of smoke. Just
then the flames burst out on the side, and
Downing jumped over the railing to save his
life. Hillnouse however, said he heard
man grooming just inside the cabin, and he
went back to rescue this man. He never
car1e out again. aud he was not seen alive
after that, and il Is believed he was sacrificed
in the noble attempt TO save another mans
life There is no telling just how many lost
their lives in the ire. Some say that ten
others are missing, out all know are the two
negroes, Lewis Adams and Benjamin Bush,
who were drowned, and two whites missing.
j think two other white men were burned
with the boat, and there must have been
others, for ] don't think they had a chance
to be awakened and then escape, for it was
all could do with The smartest kind Of run
ming to get out alive. Had the fire broken
out one hour later, when all the men would
have been N bed, none of us would have
escaped As to the origin OF the fire know
nothing. The cook says the boys told HIM
before he went to sleep that the fires in the
galley were sll out AID every thing safe"
The Bradish johnson was built in the West for
what is called the Louisiana lower coast trade
that is, from New Orleans down to the passes of
the Mississippi Captain J. Stone bought her. aud
ran her on the Alabama and is tributaries for
several years until she was sold at Marshaps
sale The purchaser was Captain II. G. Baldwin,
who kept her in the same trade. After his death
Mr.. RittenhOuse Moore bought her, Two years
ago she was condemned and went out of commits
sion She was not insured, and her value was
1OmiuaII